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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28959762">And I'll be the lucky one</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_empty_pen/pseuds/the_empty_pen'>the_empty_pen</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Gilbert adopts a kid au [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pandora Hearts</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Gilbert tries to overcome his phobia, Kid Fic, alas: double adoption??, cat fic, just fluff, set after the other work in this series</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 06:21:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,482</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28959762</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_empty_pen/pseuds/the_empty_pen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Charlie returns with a cat that she's found outside and Gilbert is forced to face his crippling fear of cats.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Gilbert Nightray &amp; Original Character(s), Lottie/Gilbert Nightray</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Gilbert adopts a kid au [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2124045</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>And I'll be the lucky one</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi!<br/>So, in a group chat, we sort of came to the conclusion that Gilbert adopting a cat too would be quite a nice idea, especially considering his crippling fear of cats xD This thing is set after my long fic "Gone too soon", which is Part 1 of this series. I think you can probably read it without having read that, though. Sure, it might make more sense otherwise, but I'm not mentioning lots that happened.<br/>I'd also like to point out that this is most absolutely not how fast you overcome phobias but ya know *gestures wildly* this is a fanfiction so hey. I have a phobia so adjfgkhadk it still is different for everyone so I guess,,, and Gil aslo wasn't super frozen the second time he saw Cheshire!! So maybe he's alrady improved by then! But like, in terms of fear of animals, having one nice animal usually tends to be very helpful, I was really scared of dogs once because one attacked me and now I'm like 'yeah dogs are just fine' so ajkfghkjadgh <br/>Ok ok enough of my weird ranting.<br/>Have fun reading!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Dad!”</p><p>Gilbert immediately looks up from his newspaper when Charlie crashes through the door, stumbling into the kitchen with a bundle of cloth in her arm. Gilbert recognizes it as her scarf a second later.</p><p>“Charlie?” he asks, standing up, “are you ok? Did you get hurt?”</p><p>Running over to him, he already breathes out when she shakes her head.</p><p>“No, I’m not the one who’s hurt. It’s this. I found it in a bush here in the mansion and it’s so tiny and fragile and- please help it…!”</p><p>Gilbert silently reaches out his hand. It’s without a doubt an animal, so maybe a bird? Or a hedgehog?<br/>Slowly, he peels the scarf off the animal.<br/>And freezes.<br/>It’s terribly small, yes. However, it’s grey, striped, has blue eyes that stare up at him, two pointed ears on its head, and whiskers.<br/>Cat.<br/><em>This is literally a cat.</em><br/>He stumbles back, grabs his own shoulder with his hand. Cat. Charlie has brought in a cat and he has to take care of it.<br/>Except…<br/>With his heart beating so fast, speaking is kind of hard; his hands grasping the sleeves of his shirt are extremely sweaty, his voice hitching in his throat.</p><p>“Lottie,” he mumbles under his breath, trying to appear as calm as possible, but with his eyes darting back and forth, switching between Charlie and this absolute <em>monster</em> in her arms, it’s barely possible. She’s brought a cat home. A literal cat.<br/>“Go to Lottie. Please. Charlie, please.”</p><p>He knows there are tears in his eyes, which makes this all the worse. Charlie stares at him for a moment, then shakes her head in confusion. Right. Gilbert hasn’t ever told her of his phobia. It just hasn’t come up in conversation yet, and there’s absolutely no reason as to why anyone should bring a cat into the house either. Not when all of them know about his crippling fear of those little beasts.</p><p>She turns around slowly, and leaves, hurriedly. Gilbert does understand that she wants to save the cat, which is all fine, if she finds a new owner for it in the next few days. <br/>Slumping back down onto the chair, he takes a very deep breath. Ok. The cat is gone. And it was just a baby cat. Just remembering its claws, Gilbert shudders. How can anyone like beasts with claws that sharp? Can’t people see that that they’re going to slit his throat open? </p><p>Ok, to be fair, Gilbert does know that his phobia might also be rooted in rather scary encounters he had with cats in his past. <br/>A second deep breath. A third. A fourth. He relaxes all his muscles. <br/>The cat is gone, gone, gone. It’s all fine now. <br/>Gilbert resumes to reading the newspaper, although his hand is still trembling like hell. He just hopes that Lottie will handle the situation in his stead. He will just have to explain to Charlie as to why he freaked out like that.</p><p>*</p><p>“Dad?”</p><p>Gilbert opens the door just a creak, peeks into the room. If an outsider were to look at him, it would probably look as if he was expecting a monster to be inside of that room. Technically, that is exactly what Gilbert is feeling. Its claws are still ingrained into his mind, eyes looking at him as if it’s going to kill him-</p><p>“Gilbert. Come in, my God, this is a kitten. Surely you can’t be afraid of something as cute as a kitten?”</p><p>By now, he already regrets going upstairs to look after Lottie and Charlie. He isn’t good with cats, and Lottie is well aware of that. Why is she mocking him for this in first place?<br/>Embarrassment creeps up his cheeks in the form of a blush upon realizing that she’s right. He’s a wimp. No normal adult man who has gone through tons of traumatizing events would be afraid of a kitten. He has been stabbed and shot, yet he’s scared of having claws in his hand, wounds that would heal in the span of literal minutes? <br/>Slowly, he pushes the door fully open and looks at the two of them. Both his girlfriend (he still can’t believe that) and his daughter are sitting on her bed, Charlie’s scarf on the bed between them. And on it… the silver monster.</p><p>“Dad… you’re afraid of cats?” as empathetic as Charlie is obviously trying to appear, Gilbert can see the grin on her face anyways. Everyone who’s ever learned of his fear for cats has laughed at him, and really, he can’t even tell them off for it. It’s absolutely ridiculous. Shouldn’t he have gotten used to cats back with Dinah already?<br/>Instead of answering, he just closes the door behind him, feeling himself beginning to sweat. He knows this is stupid. He should get over this once and for all.</p><p>“She’s really cute! I bet you won’t be afraid of her!” the mocking tone in Charlie’s voice is already gone, “I promise you’ll love her! She hasn’t tried to scratch me either! Rose is very sweet, Dad!”</p><p>Gilbert shivers at the pure thought of getting closer to that beast, but it’s a cat. Or well, <em>she</em> is just a cat. Rose is a little ball of silver fluff with the most terrifying claws and teeth Gilbert has ever seen, the murderous intent in her eyes not to be forgotten. <br/>He takes a deep breath, and, despite feeling the panic rise up from his toes into his chest already, he gets closer. One step at a time.</p><p>“Are you finally going to confront your phobia, Gilbert?” Lottie asks, shooting him one of the most condescending grins he has ever seen coming from her lips. Not that he can truly complain about this, she’s right. </p><p>“I’ll try, ok? I’ll… try.”</p><p>If only his voice didn’t tremble as much and sounded so weak. All he really wants to do is dig a hole and lie down in it for eternity, but now he’s made his decision before two witnesses.<br/>Charlie nods at him encouragingly, while Lottie is still grinning, obviously not believing that he will succeed at that. Again, condemning Lottie for that would be hypocritical of him since he surely as hell doesn’t believe in himself.<br/>Another step. Rose looks up at him, amber eyes huge. </p><p>“Look, she’s really kind and gentle!” Charlie exclaims again, slowly reaching out for Rose. Gilbert so direly wants to scream at her not to do that, because what if this monster scratches her? He bites his lip until he tastes blood when Charlie’s fingers slowly stroke the (very soft looking) fur of the cat. Rose closes her eyes and starts… vibrating? Moreover, a sound starts to leave its monstrous body and-<br/>The cat is purring, Gilbert realizes belatedly, not about to turn into a killing machine, which is a very important difference.</p><p>“See? She hasn’t even scratched us when we bathed and dried her! Whoever left her on the streets must be a monster.”</p><p>Slowly, something starts to occur to Gilbert. The cat really isn’t a monster. Just because he’s scared as hell because an evil cat at one point- <br/>He shudders at the pure thought. No, the cat isn’t a monster. The real monster is the one who left her on the streets. Maybe she’s not so different from his daughter. Maybe she also just wants a warm home and food.</p><p>“Come on, Gil. Just pat her. She won’t do anything to you. Want me to reach over and make you?”</p><p>Surprisingly, Lottie’s voice is actually soft for once. Of course, Lottie loves him, and Gilbert knows that, but it hasn’t changed the sarcastic remarks she still makes. But without them, she probably wouldn’t be the Lottie he loves so much.</p><p>“Actually… please. It’s about time I learn to deal with this.”</p><p>With a sigh, Lottie does actually get up to reach her hand out to Gilbert’s. As always, he feels his cheeks heat up at the contact – it’s been a year, damnit, when will he ever learn?</p><p>“I believe in you. You’ve quit smoking for good, I’m very sure you can pet a cat. It can’t be that hard, can it?”</p><p>Gilbert shakes his head, but in reality, he just wants to nod and continue nodding until Lottie and Charlie back off and don’t make him touch the damned cat. <br/>His breathing is going harder again, and he absolutely can’t believe he’s about to do this. He’s going to pet a cat. He has never once in his life voluntarily pet a cat.<br/>Charlie is still stroking her little head, and she’s still purring. What if she just hates Gilbert? What if he’s the only one she can’t stand and attacks him as soon as-<br/>No. He’s sounding stupid and he’s very glad he’s not saying any of this out loud. </p><p>“You’re sure you want to? Your hand is very, very sweaty, Gil. It’s a cat. It can’t do anything bad to you.”</p><p>In theory, he knows that. And if Charlie wasn’t nodding at him in the most encouraging manner possible, Gilbert would have backed down.</p><p>“Yes,” he answers, directed at Lottie. </p><p>As a response, she takes his hand properly, but so that his fingertips are still ready to actually stroke the cat’s head like Charlie still is.<br/>His fingers are twitching when Lottie pulls him closer towards the cat. He’s still tasting fresh blood on his lips and something tells him he’s going to faint or just stop moving.</p><p>“Ready?”</p><p>To his own dismay, Gilbert nods. He’s feeling sick, his stomach churning, but Charlie taking away her hand from Rose and putting it onto his is encouragement enough.<br/>Lottie giggles very highly, Gilbert knows he’s pale, and then it happens.<br/>His fingers touch fur. It’s incredibly… soft? And nothing happens at all; no biting, no scratching, nothing. Rose continues purring, even when he slowly strokes her little head. He doesn’t find it to be that… bad? Slowly, he begins moving his fingers, and both Lottie and Charlie let him go. He just lets them move back and forth by a single centimeter, nothing more. God knows when this beast would lash out.</p><p>“Are you ok, Dad?”</p><p>“She’s… nice?” he answers, although it sounds more like a question. Gilbert can’t believe he’s petting a cat after all, and he’s not really hating it. Sure, he’s absolutely scared, but she feels soft, which is quite nice, and the purring does somehow calm his anxiety a little.</p><p>“So, can we keep her?” Charlie asks, her voice so pleading that Gilbert couldn’t possibly deny her this wish.</p><p>“…Yes.”</p><p>*</p><p>Gilbert has indeed kind of gotten used to the cat. Yes, he isn’t touching her often, but he doesn’t have panic attacks at seeing her in the doorstep anymore. Charlie has tried teaching her to leave Gilbert alone, at least when he says no. Because really, sometimes it’s still hard to have a cat in the house when it’s the thing he’s most scared of (apart from several traumatic events). But sometimes… he really manages.</p><p>“Rose?” he asks when he sees silver peek through the door. Charlie next to him, sitting on the counter while he’s making cake, immediately jumps down.</p><p>“I’ll keep her out!”</p><p>“No,” Gilbert sighs, cracking open another egg, “it’s fine. I- I’ll manage. Promise.”</p><p>Charlie pats his shoulder, then makes a ‘pspsps’ noise directed towards the kitten.<br/>Rose has grown quite a bit and yes, Gilbert has indeed gotten attached to her in the end. Yes, she is a cat, but she might the one exception.<br/>She has only scratched Charlie twice, but that was when she was playing, so Gilbert supposes that is normal cat behaviour. Besides, Charlie has ignored her for a few hours after that, which probably taught her to keep her claws in. He really has no idea why this cat is so nice.<br/>He tries to concentrate on the last egg, despite the cat walking into the room. He can hear her paws on the floor, one after another, close with each step-<br/>He takes a deep breath. It’s ok. She hasn’t ever attacked him.</p><p>“Uh, she’s walking towards you. But calmly, her tail is all still.”</p><p>While Gilbert appreciates that Charlie keeps him informed when he throws the eggshells into the little bowl that he’s using as a trash can, he would rather not concentrate on the cat.<br/>A mere second later, he feels something against his leg. <br/>A slight bump of a tiny, furry head against his leg, then a body following.<br/>Gilbert freezes, thinking that this is the end of his life, but instead, he hears the now well-known purr coming from down below him.<br/>The worst thing possibly happens. He feels tears shooting into his eyes, hot and warm, and the cake would probably have tasted salty if he hadn’t pulled back fast enough. A tear drops ono his shirt, and Charlie stares at him.</p><p>“Dad? I promise, she won’t hurt you! Rose- “</p><p>“She’s nice.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>Charlie blinks at him, taking the spoon out of Gilbert’s hand and continuing to mix the eggs, flour, and milk. </p><p>“Are you ok?”</p><p>“She’s such a nice cat.”</p><p>In a swift motion, he leans down and just reaches for Rose. He knows how to pick up cats, has witnessed Lottie and Charlie doing it often enough. He wraps one hand around her stomach, she doesn’t even meow, and he slowly raises her up towards him. </p><p>“Wait, I’ll support her, so you can hold her properly!”</p><p>Charlie pushes her hand below Rose’s butt in order to not have Gilbert hurt her on accident.<br/>Her belly fur is just as fluffy, and she looks up at him, with those sweet little amber eyes.<br/>Gilbert can’t believe he’s holding a cat with his own hand, smiling at it softly.<br/>She rubs her head against his chest, and a tear drops onto her ear.</p><p>“I’m sorry for having been so scared of you, Rose. You’re a sweetheart. I’m going to cook something nice for dinner later, especially for you. I’m sure there are things I can cook for cats.”</p><p>Charlie grins up at him while more tears are running down his cheeks, and into the cat. He feels paws resting on the back of his hand, claws only out a little in case she falls, probably. </p><p>“Charlie, I love Rose a lot.”</p><p>“I can see that, Dad.”</p><p>*</p><p>It’s been a year ever since they’ve adopted the cat, and neither Lottie nor Charlie is surprised when they find Gilbert on the sofa, Rose huddled up against his chest, him cradling her in his arm. His nose is buried between her ears, and he’s snoring quietly.</p><p>“I think Gilbert prefers the cat over me,” Lottie states, as a matter of fact, and the only thing Charlie is left to do is agree with her.</p>
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